Photo: Pollinator · CC BY-SA 3.0At 2.0%, unemployment in Murrells Inlet is lower than in 85% of U.S. towns
About one in seven work in Murrells Inlet itself; outside it, Myrtle Beach draws the most (10%, 14 miles). The two grades for Murrells Inlet are B+ for jobs and income and B− for walkability. A typical one-way commute lasts 24 minutes, against 26 across South Carolina and 26 nationally.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where Murrells Inlet stands out on work
Murrells Inlet has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Murrells Inlet went from 2,425 in 2013 to 4,771 in 2023, +97%. The jobs ↓
A big share show a job far from home
33% of working residents have a main job more than 50 miles away. Part of that is employers that report every worker at one head office, so not all of those trips happen daily. How far ↓
Murrells Inlet’s workforce skews older
36% of Murrells Inlet’s working residents are 55 or older. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
Breaking down the Jobs & income grade for Murrells Inlet
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Murrells Inlet is better than 72% of U.S. towns, #23 of 168 in South Carolina. Unemployment is its strongest input; household income ranks lowest, though still above most U.S. towns ($77,438, U.S. $80,734). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate and job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Murrells Inlet could be anywhere from B− to A.
Health, schools and offices: most of the jobs in Murrells Inlet
4,771 jobs are based in Murrells Inlet.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Murrells Inlet, 2013 → 2023: 2,425 → 4,771. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Murrells Inlet’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Short hops and long hauls from Murrells Inlet
About 33% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The daily flow of workers through Murrells Inlet
On a workday 3,428 residents head out to work, 526 work right here, and 4,245 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.21 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
The places Murrells Inlet commutes to
Where Murrells Inlet clocks in
10% of workers
6% of workers
5% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
About 24 minutes each way for Murrells Inlet’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Murrells Inlet workers work from home, vs 12% across South Carolina. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 3,511 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across South Carolina: 86% drive alone, <1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Most of Murrells Inlet commutes by car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Murrells Inlet is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns, #87 of 169 in South Carolina. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 0.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 2.4% across South Carolina.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,129 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 0.9% of Murrells Inlet households have no vehicle (South Carolina 5.7%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Murrells Inlet’s commuters take a bus or train.
Ranked on jobs and income, Murrells Inlet is 1,065th among 2,878 U.S. towns of 7,000 to 14,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Beverly Hills MI | 10,449 | $177K | 1.7% | 1.6% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Ladue MO | 8,934 | $250K | 1.1% | 1.7% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 224 | Lake Murray of Richland SC | 7,023 | $119K | 2.0% | 2.3% | 3% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 268 | James Island SC | 12,660 | $104K | 5.6% | 1.2% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 821 | Powdersville SC | 10,771 | $85K | 9.3% | 1.7% | 6% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 1,063 | Twin Lakes CO | 8,030 | $96K | 9.8% | 4.8% | 1% | B+ |
| 1,064 | Progress Village FL | 10,450 | $89K | 7.4% | 4.6% | 2% | B+ |
| 1,065 | Murrells Inlet SC | 10,044 | $77K | 7.3% | 2.0% | 13% | B+ |
| 1,066 | Bound Brook NJ | 13,038 | $91K | 11.1% | 4.1% | 4% | B+ |
| 1,067 | Archbald PA | 7,598 | $72K | 8.2% | 1.4% | 13% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,878 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Murrells Inlet, the top three, the last and three more from South Carolina.
How Murrells Inlet compares with the towns next door
The biggest share goes to Garden City (3%).
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Murrells Inlet workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murrells Inlet | – | B+ | B− | 24 min | $77,438 |
| Garden City | 3% | C− | B− | 22 min | $47,249 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Murrells Inlet’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Murrells Inlet: questions
What is the median household income in Murrells Inlet?
$77,438 (±$12,290) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $69,324 across South Carolina and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Murrells Inlet?
7.3%, against 14.1% across South Carolina and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Murrells Inlet?
24 minutes each way on average, against 26 across South Carolina and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Murrells Inlet work?
13% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Myrtle Beach (10%, 14 mi), Conway (6%, 19 mi), Litchfield Beach (5%, 7 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Murrells Inlet walkable?
Murrells Inlet is more walkable than 48% of U.S. towns (Walkability B−): an EPA walkability index of 8.1 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Murrells Inlet without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 1% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Murrells Inlet, from the people who make the trip.
More of Murrells Inlet
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.